


in another universe

by PastelGreywaren



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF), Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Ambiguous Relationship, Dan is sassy and confused, Dancing, Domesticity, Gem Fusion, Gem!Phil, I might have upped the romantic undertones oops, M/M, Mentions of Louise and PJ, Phil is frustrated and also confused, Steven Universe AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-14
Updated: 2018-08-14
Packaged: 2019-06-27 10:01:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15683142
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PastelGreywaren/pseuds/PastelGreywaren
Summary: This was it. Phil wasn’t sure what it was, but he felt that it was now or never. He lifted his gaze and focused on Dan, the intensity with with which he did seemingly disturbing his flatmate. Dan eyed him dubiously, and before the other could open his mouth, Phil was blurting, “Let’s fuse.”Dan blinked, then blinked again, looking as if he were about to say something before thinking better of it and simply staring with knitted brows. “You’re serious?” he finally asked apparently upon noting the lack of mirth on Phil’s face.“Yeah,” Phil replied firmly, though he wrung his hands nervously in his lap.





	in another universe

**Author's Note:**

> Hey!! So this is my first dnp/Steven Universe fic wow  
> I got super caught up in the worldbuilding of this thing that I’m tempted to write more if this goes well  
> Anywho, please enjoy!! (fyi there are probably typos in here that I didn’t catch pls forgive me)

Phil was a right cruddy gem, in his own humble opinion. Yeah, he supposed he could get a free pass, being half human and all, but that wasn’t what he wanted. He wanted to be a _real_ gem, part human or not. 

 

Gems were supposed to have powers. Phil had powers, sure, but they were unpredictable at best and nonexistent at worst. Once, he’d accidentally conjured himself a bubble-like shield from the blue lace agate on his belly when he tripped over a moving box. Whenever he tried to do it again— even going so far as to recreate his fall— it was to no avail, and he walked away full of disappointment and bruised organs.

 

Another time, he’d placed a comforting hand on Dan’s shoulder during a particularly rough night for the other when his best friend’s tears inexplicably came to a halt, and he lifted his head with wide eyes.

 

“What... what did you do?” Dan had asked, brows furrowed and face splotchy. Phil could only stare, mouth slightly agape.

 

“What did _I_ do? I just— I just put my hand on you,” he replied, beginning to worry at his lower lip with his teeth. “Should I stop?”

 

“No,” Dan began, though he sounded unsure. It didn’t make Phil feel any better. “I feel... I dunno, calm? I don’t want to be calm. I shouldn’t be calm. My mind is— it’s clear. What are you doing?”

 

Phil drew his hand away like he’d been burnt, and Dan flinched the moment they’d lost contact, curling in on himself. “Fuck, put it back,” he said, voice quiet and strangled. Phil did as he was told, albeit hesitantly, and the tension in Dan’s shoulders drained.

 

They’d later deduced together that Phil apparently produced “calming aura shit”, in Dan’s words, when in the presence of someone he worries for. Dan promptly instructed him to “bugger off” and quit worrying so much.

 

Gems also didn’t age. Phil aged like a human for the most part, if a bit slower than average. He’d often been mistaken for a primary schooler in his mid-teens, and he still held the appearance of someone in their early twenties even being a decade older than that. Still, even normal people can look much younger than their actual age, so it wasn’t anything remarkable.

 

Finally, gems could fuse. He’d seen it himself, nearly passed out when he did. Two of his closest friends, a quartz named Louise and a topaz named PJ, had wanted to show him a “cool gem trick”. Of course he’d agreed, curiously watching the two dance until they were enveloped in light, leaving a much different, much taller gem in their place. With _so many eyes_... Phil could only nod and stare as they introduced themselves as Carnelian, easily picking him up to give him a friendly squeeze. At that moment, Phil knew two things— one; fusion was _amazing_ , and two; he wanted to do it.

 

He’d tried a few times after that, waltzing with Louise until he was doubled over panting, and spinning with PJ until he fell on his ass and hid in his room for the rest of the day. The two of them had offered him apologetic smiles, telling him relatively the same thing; that he’d get it eventually, he just had to find the right gem. That made it sound like bloody dating. Phil began to believe that he just wasn’t capable of fusion, but he wasn’t entirely ready to give up. He held onto the hope that he just hadn’t found someone he clicked with.

 

It wasn’t until he quite literally smacked into Dan in their apartment one morning that he realized maybe he _had_ found the right person. They’re practically symbiotic organisms with a creepy telepathic mind-meld from being around each other for so long. If that wasn’t a real connection, Phil didn’t know what was. He was still a human, gem or not, so even if he couldn’t fuse with gems because of it, maybe he’d be able to fuse with another human. But how would he approach Dan about it? ‘Oh, hey, dance with me so our bodies can become one single projection of our individual light.’ No! He’d sound like an absolute loon, and Dan would definitely call him out as one. He needed a strategic plan...

 

The on-screen whistle blew and the race was over, pulling Phil from his thoughts. Luigi mourned his loss on the lower half of the screen, while King Boo waved to the digital crowd on the upper half to celebrate taking home first place. Phil had been in first until a series of unfortunate events— including (but not limited to) a blue shell, three red shells, and a banana— landed him in dead last. He pouted and dropped his controller into his lap as Dan whooped and stood from his seat beside Phil. He pushed Dan’s leg half heartedly, sending him off balance and yelping an octave higher than his speaking voice. The other was saying something then, probably still boasting about his win and teasing Phil for being a sore loser, but he wasn’t listening. All he could think about was fusion. This had to work. He’d never heard of fusion with a human, but he was also the first known gem-human hybrid in existence. Anything was possible, right?

 

This was it. Phil wasn’t sure what it was, but he felt that it was now or never. He lifted his gaze and focused on Dan, the intensity with with which he did seemingly disturbing his flatmate. Dan eyed him dubiously, and before the other could open his mouth, Phil was blurting, “Let’s fuse.”

 

Dan blinked, then blinked again, looking as if he were about to say something before thinking better of it and simply staring with knitted brows. “You’re serious?” he finally asked apparently upon noting the lack of mirth on Phil’s face.

 

“Yeah,” Phil replied firmly, though he wrung his hands nervously in his lap.

 

“That’s... Phil, hold on. That’s just a gem thing, right? Humans can’t fuse. Right?”

 

Phil shrugged, gaze dancing to the corner of the room to one of his potted calla lilies. It was wilting. “I dunno. I couldn’t fuse with PJ or Louise. Thought it might be because I’m part human.” He felt Dan settle back onto the sofa beside him, the cushions dipping and causing Phil to lean towards the other ever so slightly. “I thought if I can’t fuse with a gem, maybe I could fuse with a human. Somehow. I don’t know. Trust me?”

 

Dan was silent for a moment, setting his own controller aside as he leaned back onto the couch to ponder this. Maybe Phil was rushing it. For some gems, fusion was a major event. It was trusting your light with someone else and vice versa. Phil held some of that sentiment, too, but at this point, he just wanted to see if he could do it at all, no matter who it happened with. Was Dan aware of the gravity of fusion? Probably. He was a smart guy, and Phil knew he spent a good portion of his time finding out all he could on anything to do with gems, even if he would’t actually admit it.

 

Dan let out a heavy exhale, turning to face Phil, who tried not to shrink under his gaze. He was beginning to regret asking until the other offered a small, dimpled smile, and nodded. Relief washed over Phil like a splash of cold water. “Alright. Fine. Just tell me what we have to do.”

 

Dan stood, rounding the coffee table, and crossed his arms over his chest, watching as Phil joined him, scuffing his shoe against the floorboard. “Well. You know. Fusion starts with a dance, so...” He trailed off, then held out both arms in position to grip one of Dan’s hands and rest one on his waist. When he flashed an awkward grin and waggled his fingers for extra pizazz, Dan rolled his eyes fondly and huffed out a laugh, stepping into Phil’s arms to mirror his positioning.

 

“This seems way too stiff and formal. Are you sure this is how it’s done?” Dan piped up skeptically, lacing their fingers together, “When I think fusion, I don’t think stuffy ballroom dancing. And when the hell did you learn how to waltz?”

 

Phil grinned cheekily, prompting a gentle kick to the shin from Dan. “A dance is a dance, right? This should work. It has to.”

 

As Phil pulled his right foot back, he didn’t miss the odd look Dan pointed in his direction. It was strangely sharp, but still soft, almost contemplative. They moved in tandem then, stepping and gliding in 3/4 time. Phil had practiced the moves until they were muscle memory, so why wasn’t it working? Up left, side right, back right, side left... He didn’t feel anything. Just like he was... dancing. Phil stumbled a bit, and Dan’s grip tightened on his waist, but he furrowed his brow and stubbornly pushed on. He had to do this. He knew he could. He was a gem, for Christ’s sake! He just needed to try harder.

 

His thoughts were interrupted as Dan pulled his hand from Phil’s, taking a step back and frowning as he tried to meet his eyes, bringing the dance to an abrupt end. “Phil,” he began quietly, the uncharacteristic softness of his voice drawing Phil’s attention. “I don’t think—“

 

“It’s going to work. Don’t tell me it won’t. Please.” That came out a bit firmer than Phil wanted, a bit too aggressive. He sighed, averting his gaze and shrugging as he added softly, “What kind of gem am I if it doesn’t?”

 

A heavy silence fell over the duo for a moment until Dan placed a heavy, comforting hand on Phil’s shoulder. He lifted his head to find Dan staring at him like... like he was the dumbest person alive. Phil wasn’t sure if he wanted to shove Dan away and shut himself up in his room or curl in on himself and shut down. Maybe if he stared at the floor hard enough, it’d open up and swallow him so he didn’t have to make a decision.

 

“What is that?” Dan asked, voice cutting through the silence as he poked a finger into Phil’s belly, onto the stone imbedded there under his shirt.

 

Phil pushed his hand away, narrowing his eyes in puzzlement. “My gem?

 

Again, Dan leveled him with a flat stare that only served to frustrate him further. Apparently their twin-telepathy decided to kick in at that moment, because Dan softened a bit. “You don’t need to prove that you’re a gem with fusion. I think that rock physically attached to your body says enough.”

 

Phil shrugged dismissively. “What’s the point, then? Why do I have it? What can I do?”

 

“That’s an existential question that I’d rather not think too much about, thank you very much,” Dan replied wryly. “Also. _What can you do?_ Really, Phil? That bubble? The— the calming thing? Killing all your houseplants?”

 

“Well, I guess— hey! Leave my plants out of this!”

 

Dan laughed then— _really_ laughed— and Phil couldn’t help but smile. “Gem or not, you’re still Phil. Who cares if you can’t literally morph yourself into another living thing? You’re Phil, and Phil is all I need. All anyone needs,” he added quickly, his words genuine and his smile even more so. All of Phil’s residual anger and frustration had faded then, if there was any of it left in the first place, replaced by a warmth in his chest and a fluttering in his stomach. “You’re almost too bright and sunshine-y as it is,” Dan added, faking a gag and prompting Phil to sock him in the bicep.

 

They both fell into a fit of laughter then, bumping into each other as their shoulders shook. It was easy, being with Dan like this. He felt light, Dan looked radiant, and everything seemed to fall into place like a puzzle finally finished. Sure, they had their moments where words and objects alike were thrown at one another, but moments like these were what really mattered in the grand scheme of things. Phil felt like he _belonged_ , and if he couldn’t act completely like a gem, so be it. He was doing a perfect job being human. Being Phil.

 

Dan raised his hands, an eyebrow quirked as he waited for Phil to catch on that, oh, wow, he was digging up their ancient secret handshake? “I don’t even remember it,” Phil chuckled out, raising his hands to meet Dan’s nonetheless.

 

“Me either,” his best friend replied, mirth twinkling in his eyes.

 

They clapped their hands together, fumbling through the multi-step handshake until their sides hurt and they were wheezing for air. Phil pushed his head playfully against Dan’s shoulder, opening his eyes just in time to catch the light absolutely radiating from his gem before it engulfed them.

 

•••••

 

‘Why is the floor so far away?’ Phil— no, Dan— no... _they_  thought. What? His— their eyes widened. Dan’s button up was open, they noticed, layered over Phil’s t-shirt. Both items seemed to be a little short, a little small for their new frame, exposing the baby blue gem that normally decorated Phil’s navel. Their trousers were certainly interesting— a strange combination of Dan’s ripped jeans over Phil’s muppet pants. They were more like high-waters now, really.

 

They took a wobbling step, teetering precariously on long legs as they observed the room. Dan? Where was he? No, where was Phil? No... He’s here. We’re here. Both of us?

“Is this fusion?” they mused aloud, thoughts as one as they took another step on unsteady legs. “We fused! _I_ fused?” they continued, glee in their voice and wonder in their eyes. An epiphany hit them and they scrambled down the hall to the bathroom, ducking to avoid hitting their head and squeezing themselves through the doorway like some circus contortionist. The effort had them out of breath— a big surprise— and their chest heaved as they fumbled for the light switch in the dark.

 

The lightbulbs above them flickered to life and they were met with the image of themselves in the mirror. Their skin was paler than Dan’s but tanner than Phil’s, dotted with moles and freckles. Their eyes were an unusual gradient of brown to blue, mostly brown, with Dan’s long lashes. Their nose was unmistakably Phil’s. A smile revealed Phil’s grin and Dan’s dimples on their cheeks, and a hair-check yielded dark, black-brown curls styled into a quiff with one unruly ringlet hanging over their forehead.

 

“Wow,” they murmured, stuck between bouncing in glee and continuing to admire themselves. “We need a name,” they continued instead, narrowing their eyes at their mirror image. Dan and Phil... Phil and Dan... Together. A name clicked, and they straightened so abruptly that they knocked their head against the ceiling. Contorting themselves out of the bathroom once more whilst nursing the fresh knot on their skull, they took a deep breath, then grinned. “My name is Dil. That’s a good name, right?” Yes. Their— _his_  name was Dil. He was a fusion; a fusion of two people who are, for lack of a better term, soulmates.

 

Dil wobbled back into the living room, reaching for his phone— one of them, at least— to contact Louise and PJ when his knees abruptly became very acquainted with the edge of the coffee table. With a strangled yelp, he was unceremoniously vaulted over its surface with the grace of a drunken camel, and braced for an impact... that never came? Dil opened his eyes to find that he was indeed on the ground, but a light blue bubble was unfurling around him like the leaves of a palm. “I did it! The bubble!” He gasped in glee. The bubble finished fading, and Dil was dumped onto the hard wood floor of the flat. Phil felt— no, Dan felt—!

 

Light engulfed them once more, and before he knew it, Phil was nursing a sore head and a sore back as he met the floor yet again. He heard Dan groaning beside him, craning his neck to find him face down on the floor making no effort to stand. Phil heaved himself into a sitting position and took a moment to process what the hell had just happened, only to whisper to Dan in utter awe, “We fused.”

 

“One of us apparently doesn’t know how to bloody walk, fucking hell,” Dan complained, voice muffled against the floor. He finally pushed himself up as well, settling on the floor to face Phil. “But, yeah. We fused. How, though?”

 

“The handshake,” Phil blurted with wide eyes, giving Dan a few excited smacks on the arm at the revelation. Dan pushed his hands away, frowning, then his brows knitted.

 

“The handshake? We didn’t even do it right.”

 

“But we had fun! We were laughing, and talking, and— and it was a real connection! We were connected then, Dan!”

 

Phil could see that Dan was muffling a laugh, biting his lip around a wry little smile. “Sorry, sorry,” he managed, clearing his throat. “That’s just _so_  cheesy, Phil. But you’re right. Unfortunately. It worked.”

 

“Did you like it?” Phil queried, leaning toward the other. Dan eyed him, giving him that flat look that always somehow perfectly conveyed, “really? Are you serious right now?”

 

“Phil,” Dan began slowly, gently, “You’re making this sound like a first-time amateur pornography.”

 

Phil’s eyes widened, color bursting on his cheeks as he let out a guffaw that was more surprised than anything. “Stop that! It’s an honest question!”

 

Dan rolled his eyes. “Yes, I liked it. But you should bloody well know that. We were literally the same person for ten minutes.”

 

“All I know is that I— that we—...” Phil trailed off, pursing his lips. He remembered what he felt as Dil, and he supposed that was just what Dil felt alone as a product of Dan and Phil. Dil was happy. He was giddy and curious and... an experience. Dil was an experience. Now Phil understood what fusion truly was. “I guess you’re right.”

 

Dan smiled, a genuine smile with dimples and the works, and a comfortable silence fell over them after that. Being in each other’s company like this was sort of like fusion, but not quite. Fusion was the epitome of being with someone, but this was nice, too. Dan meant the world to him, and even if he couldn’t fuse, even if he wasn’t a gem in some other universe, he’d still be more than content to be by Dan’s side. But, in this universe...

 

“Wanna do it again?” Phil asked, biting his lip around a grin. He held out his hand, and Dan’s eyes twinkled as he took it in his own.

“Oh, hell yes.”

**Author's Note:**

> Hi again! I hope you liked this strange and lovely little crossover thing that’s been my baby for about a week now. Comments and kudos are super appreciated!! thank you so much for reading!!


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